


A Completely Uneventful Summer Walk Home

by Fridayy



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Canon Compliant, First Kiss, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Mostly because im a weak man, Sort Of, There's a little bit of implied daisuga too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-12 01:07:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29626785
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fridayy/pseuds/Fridayy
Summary: Asahi Azumane has never liked Summer. Well, until an introspective walk home with a certain libero, that is.
Relationships: Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu
Comments: 6
Kudos: 44





	A Completely Uneventful Summer Walk Home

**Author's Note:**

> I coughed up like 2/3's of this in an Asanoya lovin' haze and figured I might as well finish it. Then upon finishing it realized, "Well, might as well share." and now we're here.

Summer had never particularly been a favorite of Asahi’s.

It was hot, he couldn’t wear a hoodie he liked for more than a minute or so without sweating his ass off, did he mention it was hot? He’d always liked the cold much more than the heat. In the cold, you could bundle up in sweaters and nice scarves and look seasonally fashionable as well as staying warm. In the summer, about a good chunk of his wardrobe filled with soft sweaters and comfy hoodies was instantly considered null due to the fact that: A) wearing any of those in 90 degree weather would definitely cause him to sweat to death, and B) he didn’t want to attract unwanted attention by looking like he was prepped for a 20 degree winter.

Even as a kid he hated the season change. He hated the fact that Summer meant his father would snap at him to cut his hair soon because it ‘was way too hot for long hair’, meant he’d inevitably be dragged off to the barbers shop to cut his hair far, far shorter than he wanted, meant he’d cry on the whole car ride home. Meant his big sister Akemi would tease him for what was basically the equivalent of a sad, sad bowl cut until he could grow it out again over the Winter and Fall.

There were more things he hated about Summer when he was younger, too. The cicadas. They were always so loud and creepy- to him, anyways. Once, when Asahi’s hair was still to his chin at least, his sister had jokingly stuck one of the empty shells onto it. Naturally, Asahi bawled so loud his mom came running out to scold Akemi the moment she heard him. To which Akemi had responded, defensively, “It’s not my fault he’s so bullyable!”

Which, in hindsight, was probably true considering how many of his classmates before high school seemed to take it upon themselves to yank on his hair whenever the opportunity presented itself. Maybe that’s why he’d never had many friends when he was younger. At least, not ones that he got invited to hang out with during the Summer break. He obviously wasn’t in a club then, so… for the most part, his Summer breaks were lonely. And hot. With Cicadas. And lots of tears in the car.

Maybe Summer was just the worst season in general.

Whatever the case, it was better now. He had friends- actual friends that invited him over after volleyball club and didn’t stick cicadas in his long, uncut hair. Right, club; he had that, too. Practice Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays. It assured he wasn’t ever too lonely, at the least. Wasn’t great combined with the heat, though…

Which happened to be what he was thinking on a Friday, drenched in sweat, desperately downing the last of his water bottle, and having run so hard he was 100% sure his legs would be sore all weekend. He felt a rather hardy slap on his back- one delivered with way too much force than necessary- and groaned. “Daichi, I’m _dying_. Don’t hit me.”

“Can’t… Can’t handle a little run?” Suga teased breathily, despite also being very clearly fatigued. “Woooow, some ace… some ace you are.” He wheezed.

Daichi glanced at him a moment, his gaze surprisingly playful. “…You sure you’re one to be talking?” he inquired teasingly, cocking a brow.

“Shhhhhhut up.” Suga muttered, letting his arms dangle as he doubled over in exhaustion.

Asahi grimaced, taking another hearty sip from his water bottle. “Can’t you two make coach go easier on us? Like… captain and vice privilege, or something like that.”

Suga laughed, more so one pained exhale of air. “HAH! Privilege! Coach’d make me… make me run two more laps! Dai... I dunno bout Daichi. Ukai’d probably just give ‘em a slap on the back ‘n tell him to run along.”

His captain frowned, tilting his water bottle from side to side idly as he spoke. “I don’t know about that… I’m not coach’s favorite or anything.”

“You’re the captain! He’s nicest to you!”

“He’s gotten onto me before, though.”

“But you’re the captain. He’s keepin’ you on your toes, obviously… but I’m sure he’d probably listen to you… If you happened to ask him to go easier on us…”

Daichi raised his eyebrows. “In your dreams.”

“Masochist.”

“Idealist.”

“Torture lover.”

“Low stamina.”

“Mean, mean Captain who is very mean to his vice despite the unconditional support shown from him in making sure that the Captain and his, quite frankly, amazing muscles-“

“OKAY.” Asahi interrupted. “I think we get the point.”

Suga finally stood up straight, a wide grin on his face. “Do we, though? I mean, you didn’t even let me talk about his spectacular thighs-“

“NO-“

“And his amazing arms, like, wow-“

“STOP IT.”

“Are my arms that good?”

“Oh, yeah, definitely, not to mention your calves, also-“

“I SWEAR TO GOD-“

“ASAHI-SAN!”

Asahi snapped his attention to the new voice that entered the conversation, instantly glancing downward. “Hi, Nishinoya.” He answered calmly, instantly dropping his previous frustration.

Nishinoya Yuu smiled, his brown gaze wide and large as he looked up at his much, much taller teammate. “You did great today! I swear, the last spike probably would’ve given me a bruise if I had to receive it.” He exclaimed, practically bouncing up and down on his feet with enthusiasm.

Asahi scoffed, “I wouldn’t be surprised. Every time I see you you’ve got a new bruise on you somewhere.”

“They’re like trophies! Little temporary trophies- all from a battle well won!”

“Trophies, huh?” He spoke with soft amusement, his eyes round and soft as he glanced down at his teammate. “Trophies with stories, probably.” He could feel the stares of Suga and Daichi on him, probably snickering about something or another behind him. However, with the way Nishinoya was now going on about the story of the new bruise on his thigh, he couldn’t bring himself to care.

Noya spoke with easy lightheartedness and infectious excitability. He could be talking about the migration patterns of snails (…do snails migrate?) and Asahi would listen with piqued interest, occasionally piping in with a “That’s really cool.” Or an “Oh, really?”. There was a sort of air about him, you know? The kind that makes people listen. And Asahi could listen to Noya’s voice all day if he had the opportunity. Whatever he chose to talk about.

“And this one- OI! You distracted me!”

“Wh-? How?" Asahi blinked, confusion spreading across his face.

“I was supposed to ask you a question,” Nishinoya huffed, bouncing on his toes slightly, “but you got me talking about bruises and good spikes.”

Asahi’s easy, soft smile returned. “Ah, then, ask me your question.”

Noya grinned, “Will you walk home with me today!? Usually, I go with the other second years, but I wanted to spice it up! Since… well, there’s not actually a very good reason, come to think of it. Will you, anyways?” he stopped moving once he finished, gazing up at Asahi expectantly with those big, big brown eyes.

…Big, big brown eyes he could never bring himself to refuse. 

He could feel Suga and Daichi’s eyes on him more than ever, and he tried rather desperately to pretend they weren’t affecting him slightly. Was he nervous? He definitely was- he felt nervous. And sweaty. Actually, he was sweating beforehand, but still. Was it just because of his friends watching him like hawks? What were they even watching him for? Was it just because he broke away from the conversation, or was it because of Noya himself? The uncertainty just made him more anxious.

Noya was still looking up at him expectantly, his smile waning slightly with the time it’d taken to receive an answer so far. Asahi scrambled for one, sputtering out a hasty, “Sorry- I mean- Y-Yes- sure. I- I will.”

He could feel the heat rising on his face as much as he could hear the terribly concealed snickering behind him. Noya hopped into the air in what Asahi could only assume was a mini explosion of excitement, waving his arms slightly on the comedown. “Great! Ryuu told me you’d say no- but I told him he was wrong! I’ll see you again when club ends, Asahi-Saaaaaaaan!” He dragged out the last syllable as he ran off in a blind sprint across the gym to the other second years. He knew it was ‘blind’ because he watched Noya nearly crash into the volleyball net in his victorious haze.

Asahi let out a little amused exhale, smiling despite himself. _Cute_.

…Like, in an endearing way. Y’know. Like how you’d regard a puppy or a baby duckling. That kind of cute. Not- not the other kind.

“Woooow, Asahi, ditching your best friends for your little kouhai?” Suga sniffed, wiping away an imaginary tear as Daichi solemnly shook his head from beside him. “And here I thought we meant something to you.”

Asahi cocked an eyebrow. “What? I’m just walking home with someone else for a day. It’s not like I just stabbed you or something.”

“BASICALLY!” Suga wailed, leaning against Daichi and clutching his chest as though he’d been shot. “I’m betrayed! Beside myself! Befuddled! Be… trothed.”

Daichi raised his eyebrows in amusement, placing a hand on Suga’s shoulder to keep him from sliding off of his chest and onto the ground. “I don’t think that last one means what you think it means,” He quipped, “Well, unless you’re suddenly engaged.”

Suga wiggled his eyebrows. “I could be, just depends on which one of us asks first.”

Daichi thought for a moment, a frown finally crossing his face. “…whose us?”

Asahi choked on his water.

...

“ASAHI-SAAAAN! WAIT UP!”

Asahi turned on one heel to face the source of the voice he’d already heard many times before, smiling slightly as he did so. “Sorry, Nishinoya.”

Daichi and Suga had long since departed from the clubroom, Suga practically bouncing up and down as he babbled about needing to leave early so he could have one of Daichi’s ‘special homecooked Sawamura family meals’. Daichi had just laughed at the over excitement. Though, most of the others had vanished, too- which left both Nishinoya and Asahi at the clubroom steps to walk back home. Together. Alone. Alone, but also together with themselves. Did that even make sense?

“I’ve told you like a bajillion times,” Nishinoya huffed, skidding to a halt in front of him. “You can just call me Noya. Nishinoya is more of a mouthful.”

“Ah, sorry… it’s just sort of habit…” Asahi admitted, fidgeting with his fingers slightly. “Plus, more formal.”

“Why’s it gotta be formal? Haven’t you known me for like… two years?”

“Year and a half…”

“Same thing!” Noya waved him off, setting off away from the clubroom after he spoke. Asahi followed, growing slightly concerned when Noya turned on his heel to walk backwards as he continued. “It’s been a while, is what I mean. You can call me Noya.”

“I don’t think you should walk like that… Noya.” Asahi observed, watching the ground where Noya’s feet were rather nervously. His companion simply grinned.

“Don’t worry, Asahi-san, I won’t trip. I’m not that stupid!”

Asahi wasn’t so sure about that.

He frowned. “If you say so… oh, but- you still add the ‘-san’ bit to my name, don’t you? Isn’t that something you should drop after knowing someone awhile?”

Noya hummed, "Mmm, yeah, that's true... but it's fun to say!"

Asahi cocked a brow. "Fun to say?"

"Yeah, like- Asahi-san, pay attention to me while I'm receiving! Or, Asahi-san, get over here!" 

"...I think that's just you."

"Nah, I think you're just wrong." His friend concluded, falling back to walk beside him instead.

Asahi faked a frown. "Mm... Maybe I'll catch up with Daichi and Suga instead."

Noya stumbled over a crack in the sidewalk, sputtering a quick, "Okay, okay! Fine, _Asahi,_ I'll drop the -san bit!"

“I’m teasing, I’m teasing!” Asahi amended quickly, waving his hands slightly. “Call me whatever you wanna call me, Noya.”

His teammate let out a rather exaggerated sigh of relief, hunching forward slightly as he let out a wounded, “Have you always been this mean?” He pouted, squinting his eyes shut. Despite acting hurt, Asahi could very clearly see the smile breaking through on Noya’s face. He let out a little huff of laughter. _Cute._

…Like a baby duckling. Like that.

He opened his eyes after a moment or two, squinting at the overwhelmingly ever present sun. “Sheesh. Can it get any more unbearable?” He groaned, leaning his head back.

Asahi hummed, glancing up at the sky. Cloudless. Which would’ve been nice, on a bearable, mildly weathered Spring day with a soft breeze to balance out the warmth. However, on an 85 degree day with no wind after he’d just been running and sweating to death… It wasn’t quite the same, to put it lightly.

Noya looked around the sides of the street, frowning as he did so. Suddenly, he straightened, perking up like an excited dog. “Shimada Mart! Asahi- lookie!” Asahi blinked, glancing over at where his teammate was excitedly pointing across the road. Sure enough, there was Shimada Mart- glistening and somewhat wavy with heat in the Summer sun. Noya bounced on his heels, glancing both ways across the street only a moment before snatching Asahi’s hand and dashing through the road.

He swore his heart skipped a beat.

Noya’s hand was… small. Much smaller than Asahi’s, at least, and yet he still managed to keep a firm hold around his fingers. Noya’s fingers themselves were slender yet short, perfect for receiving and maintaining grip on the ball- and, also, perfect for interlocking just so with Asahi’s own.

Stop that.

No, no, no, that’s a terrible train of thought. He- he didn’t need to be thinking about stuff like that. Not about the libero of his team, not about- about _Noya_. Despite the fact that his own face was burning from the sudden contact, Noya didn’t seem to be affected at all. He didn’t even let go of his hand once they were across the street, instead swinging open the door with his free hand and yanking Asahi inside with the other.

It was cool inside of Shimada Mart, thank god. Maybe the air conditioning would help him get rid of the red that had spread over his cheeks; though, by the way Noya had still neglected to untangle their fingers, it probably wouldn’t be happening anytime soon. At least he’d hopefully be a little less sweaty.

Noya quickly steered Asahi over to a cooler near the front, pointing excitedly at the contents. “Bingo! Blue soda pops!” he beamed, practically glowing with pure unbridled joy. _Adorable_ , Asahi didn’t even process the thought as a soft smile spread over his face. “Blue soda?” he asked, “What kind of flavor is that?”

Noya scoffed. “Uh, the best flavor, obviously. I’ve got money in my bag- I can get one for me and you!” he looked over at Asahi a moment, eyes widening slightly as he glanced down at their interlocked fingers. _So he didn’t even notice till just now,_ Asahi thought to himself as Noya finally released his hand, mumbling a quiet, “Sorry,” as he did so.

It was funny, really, that Noya thought he didn’t mourn the lost touch.

“Don’t worry about it,” Asahi said, genuinely, “I should probably apologize for how sweaty my hands were, honestly…”

“I think our hands were both sweaty. Double sweat.”

“Ew, that sounds gross.”

“Gross enough to take away your appetite for some delicious blue soda pops?” Noya asked with a grin, reaching into the cooler and waving two wrapped, rectangular popsicles at him.

Asahi let out a soft laugh, “Nah, probably not.”

Noya snickered quietly, closing the top of the cooler and happily waltzing over to the counter with his prizes. It didn’t quite occur to Asahi until Noya had already finished paying that Noya was using his money on him- a thought that brought a small wave of guilt to wash over him.

“I could’ve paid for myself, y’know- you didn’t have to waste your money on me…” Asahi started, hesitantly taking the popsicle being offered to him.

Noya cocked his head, knitting his eyebrows together in confusion. “Waste?” He echoed, frowning slightly, “It’s not a waste if you’re gonna eat it.”

“Well, I guess not, but…” Asahi hesitated, attempting to find the right words, “You’re using your own money that you got on _me._ That’s… just sort of… it makes me feel greedy, I guess.”

Noya straightened, letting out a huff of air as he spoke, “Greedy for making me spend like, 300 yen on you? Seriously, Asahi, it’s fine. It’s not like you were making me. I wanted to.” He brightened suddenly then- presumably because he’d just noticed he was still holding an unopened popsicle. “Now- c’mon! Let’s get out of here and dig in, cold popsicles always taste better in the heat!” and with that, he’d brushed past Asahi and was now holding open the door.

Asahi stared him a moment before his gaze melted, an easy smile returning once again as he gratefully slipped past his teammate and out the door. Noya hopped after him, letting the door swing close as he ripped the wrapper off his popsicle and dug in. Asahi wasn’t sure he’d ever seen anyone bite a popsicle with such… force.

He carefully tore the wrapper from his own popsicle and tossed it in a nearby bin outside of Shimada Mart, once again falling beside Noya as they set forth. He watched Noya from the corner of his eye, quietly sucking on the corner of his popsicle as Noya absolutely devoured his. “…won’t you get a brain freeze from eating that so fast?” Asahi inquired, his eyebrows knitting together in slight concern.

Noya chuckled. “Nah! I’m immune by this point- I eat these things like every day on the way home. During Winter, too!” He licked his lips, taking another wolffish bite from his frozen delight.

“…Who eats a popsicle outside during Winter…” Asahi muttered to himself, nibbling on one of the corners. He was barely a third of the way through with his own popsicle, but Noya was already halfway done at the rate he was going. It wasn’t a huge surprise though, given the way he was absolutely ravaging his poor, poor soda pop. _Seriously, who takes bites that big?_

With the now comfortable silence caused by Noya’s apparent hell-driven mission to destroy his frozen treat, Asahi allowed his mind to wander as he chewed idly on the top of his own. Today had been nice. Not like walks with Daichi and Suga, where they took it upon themselves to taunt him for his every action. Which he didn’t normally mind, surprisingly, but god could it get annoying when those fuckers were on him _all the time._ Sometimes, he just needed a break. Which was fine. And was why he was now walking home with Nishinoya for today.

…Come to think of it, why did _Noya_ want to walk home with him? He wasn’t exactly the most interesting of their teammates. That title probably fell to Noya himself. Sure, he was the ‘ace’. Big whoop. Tanaka and Hinata were practically right on his heels. Even if Hinata somewhat reminded him of an uncoordinated baby bird… that was changing. Fast. And it wasn’t any secret at all that Hinata wanted Asahi’s title. As if Asahi would ever let him have it as long as he was still around.

…But even with the ace title in his stubborn grip, there wasn’t too much reason for Noya to want to be around him, was there?

He was cowardly, weak-willed, anxious, over apologetic, did _awful_ under pressure… and he could think of a thousand more reasons why Noya would be driven away- _should_ be driven away. And yet… he admired Asahi. Looked up to him, even. When Asahi was down, Noya picked him back up without hesitation. He was always the first to compliment, to encourage, to do whatever Asahi needed him to do.

…Why?

Why would Noya even care?

Noya was everything Asahi wasn’t. He was confident, cool, smart (well… when it came to things he was passionate about), and he didn’t have a single fear in the world. He was… perfect. As close to perfect as you could get in Asahi’s opinion. Even down to all the cute little habits he had. The way he seemed to bounce on his feet when he was excited. The way he didn’t hesitate to grab onto Asahi’s hand and tug him down the street without a second thought. The way his expression just _glowed_ from the littlest of things.

Nishinoya Yuu, as far as Asahi was concerned, was perfect.

Noya took a last shockingly large bite from his popsicle, licking his lips in satisfaction. Before Asahi could tear his gaze away, Noya was already glancing up at him with a rather quizzical look in his eyes.

“…What.” He asked flatly. “Why are you looking at me like that.”

Asahi panicked. Shit. “S-sorry. I spaced out, I guess.” He muttered, messing with the strap of his bag with his only free hand. His popsicle was starting to melt now, leaving a sticky trail of blue down in between the cracks of his fingers. Noya didn’t seem to buy it completely despite not verbally opposing his excuse, staring at him a moment longer before nibbling on the wooden stick his finished popsicle had left behind.

They’d made it inside Asahi’s neighborhood a few paces ago, meaning there’d just be a few blocks to go before Noya left him alone. Perhaps that was for the better, as the sun was already beginning to dip down into the west. Asahi could see it in the burnt orange that overtook the streets, the warm glow that illuminated buildings, the sienna tint to the world. He could already hear the buzzing of cicadas setting in, too, as if summoned by the scenery.

Noya seemed to notice the change in setting, too. He looked around briefly before his eyes widened and he began frantically tugging on Asahi’s arm. “AAASAHI! You didn’t tell me there was a park in your neighborhood!”

Asahi followed his gaze to the fairly new community playground nestled among the houses. It wasn't like it was giant or extremely enticeable, just a small playset and a few swings on a bed of woodchips. He tilted his head slightly. “Mmm, yeah, but it was built awhile after I would’ve gotten the chance to enjoy it…”

“Let’s swing for a bit while you finish your popsicle! Please? Please???” Noya was practically begging him to with those eyes, and as previously learned, Asahi would never be able to turn those big brown eyes down.

He chuckled with a certain gentleness. “Alright, fine. But won’t your grandpa get upset at you if you take too long?”

Noya raised his eyebrows. “It’s real, real funny that you think he cares about what I pull.” Once again, his hand was clasped around Asahi’s before either of them could properly process it. And then Asahi was being tugged across a sea of woodchips, nearly tripping over himself in the process. He felt his face heat up again as his mind went racing over the sudden contact. He was fully aware Noya probably didn’t even notice he’d grabbed his hand, and yet even so, he couldn’t help but feel flustered. And… sort of… enjoy it.

Noya hopped onto the swing without letting go of Asahi’s hand, yanking him forward and nearly sending him toppling down onto the second swing face first. “Ack!- I’m sorry, Asahi, I keep-” he started his apology hastily as he began to pull away, but Asahi cut him off before he could think better of the response that’d already been on his mind.

“It’s fine, Noya, I told you.” He reassured, squeezing Noya’s hand slightly.

A light blush spread across Noya’s cheeks. Perhaps it could’ve been there from the heat beforehand, but… he was pretty sure he wasn’t imagining the soft smile that accompanied it.

Noya didn’t let go of his hand when Asahi finally sat down on the other swing. Asahi didn’t make him. Instead, he went back to nibbling on his half-finished popsicle, which had already melted a substantial bit of itself down between his fingers.

“Y’know, I used to hate Summer,” Noya started suddenly, lightly rocking himself in the swing as he spoke, “I was always afraid of the cicadas.”

Asahi blinked. “You? Afraid of some bugs?”

“When I was little, yeah! I mean, I was afraid of practically everything when I was little.”

Asahi stared at him blankly.

“…Like, a past life?”

“I just said when I was little!” Noya let out a huff of laughter as he spoke, “I wasn’t always like I am now.”

“…How’d you change?”

“My gramps made me do all sorts of stuff to ‘conquer my fears’. Said I could never know unless I tried, and if I didn’t try, then it was a waste.” He thought for a moment, seemingly, before continuing, “You only get one shot at life, y’know? Might as well find out the stuff you like and don’t like, step out of your comfort zone… all that stuff.” He paused. “I still think cicadas are gross, though.”

Asahi laughed slightly, squeezing Noya’s hand a little just to have something to do with his fingers. “Did your gramps not make you conquer that fear?”

“Oh, no, he tried. He put one of those empty cicada skins on my arm because he thought it was funny. I screamed so loud I made that miserable old man’s hearing aids ring; I’ll tell you what.” Noya scoffed. “but… it did help me realize that cicadas aren’t anything to be _afraid_ of. Just little bugs. Still gross, but I could probably just crush one if I really wanted to… but, even then, I like the little buzz they make. It makes things seem… summery. Warm. ”

Asahi thought for a moment. “I guess they sort of do… but I’m still not a huge fan. My sister stuck one of their shells into my hair when I was little.”

Noya sputtered, “Your _hair?_ ”

“Yup. I screamed, too… but then I just started crying. And wouldn’t stop…” Asahi trailed off, grimacing slightly.

Noya burst into laughter, keeling forward as he did so. “That’s so _sad!”_

“T-then why are you laughing?!” Asahi stammered, growing rather flustered at Noya’s exclamation.

Noya wheezed, struggling to compose himself as he attempted an answer, “because- because it’s so…. so _you!_ Like… I can imagine you being the kid that cried in Santa’s lap.”

“…”

“Oh my _god,”_ he grinned, his eyes growing wide, “you totally did, didn’t you!? BWAHAHAHAAHAAAA!!!”

Asahi’s face was burning now. “…you’re terrible.” He muttered, finally finishing off his mostly melted popsicle with one last bite. He tossed the wooden stick among the woodchips- it was biodegradable, no worries- and flexed his free hand slightly. _Sticky. Gross._

Noya’s laughter subsided, and he began swinging their interlocked fingers back and forth as he spoke, “But you still agreed to hang out here with me,” he said softly, “so I think that must say something for me, right?”

Noya looked over at him. His eyes were warm and round, a perfect blend of amber. In the warm sunlight the color practically exploded, glowing bright and colorful against the early western sunset. He was beginning to feel thankful that practice usually ran so long, because it gave him this opportunity. The opportunity to see Noya’s face under the orange Summer sun, to see the bright explosion of color in his eyes in the sienna tint of the world at a time like this, to see all the little freckles brought upon by the sun, to see… _Noya._

… _Wow._

Absently, Noya reached his free hand up to Asahi’s face, slender fingers brushing certain strands of hair that had fallen loose from the rest of his look to the side. Asahi could practically feel his face set aflame. He attempted to speak, say something, anything, but his voice was stuck in his throat. So, he let Noya’s hand brush across his cheek and brush the stray hair away.

Noya’s hand froze for a second or two; as if he'd just realized what he'd been doing. He didn't say anything, though, just let his fingers hesitate briefly before sliding further into teammates hair.

And suddenly, Asahi's hair was being pulled down.

Noya had taken his rubber band.

As quick as a flash of light Noya’s fingers were no longer intertwined with his, and he had hopped up from the swing and began _running._ “Catch me if you can, Asahi!” He taunted jovially, darting up the tiny playset steps like an excited little kid. Asahi stared after him blankly for a moment, a good portion of his hair having fallen in front of his face.

A trick.

He’d been tricked.

_…I shouldn’t. I really shouldn’t… but…_

_…Will I let that stand?_

The answer was as it usually was, whatever Noya wanted him to do. And right now, the playful glint in Noya’s eyes made it seem like he wanted a chase… so what was a little carefree playfulness once in a while, right? He sprung up from his swing and started in hot pursuit. Noya squeaked as he darted up the small kiddie steps, quickly dodging his outstretched hand and ducking down one of the slides instead with a triumphant laugh. Asahi didn’t let this stop him one bit, ducking down right after him and chasing him in a circle around the small playset.

It was hot as fuck, he was sweating his ass off now that he was running again, the cicadas were so loud he could barely think straight, and yet for once… he _loved_ Summer. He was laughing right alongside Noya in the orange sunset, chasing and swiping at and making wild grabs at him as he yelped and darted just out of reach. It was exhausting, and yet he’d never felt so light.

When he finally caught Noya, he could hardly even see. The majority of his long hair had fallen frizzy and staticky in front of his face by now, a chestnut haze adding to his already heat and adrenaline blurred vision. So, when he snatched Noya up in his arms by the waist and lifted his feet up off the ground for dramatic effect, who was to blame him when he accidently stumbled over himself and sent them both tumbling to the ground? And who was to blame an incredibly surprised Nishinoya, when he yelped and twisted around so that his arms were tightly looped around Asahi’s neck in some sort of desperate effort to stop himself from being crushed?

Asahi stopped himself from crushing Noya completely, thank god, instead landing with his knees pressed into the ground on either side of Noya’s legs. One arm was encircled around Noya’s waist where he had initially caught him, keeping him tightly pressed up against Asahi in some sort of frantic effort to at least keep his head from hitting the ground when they fell. The other was positioned just over Noya’s head to keep himself steady. Noya’s own arms were still tightly looped around Asahi’s neck, his hands gripping the back of his shirt as if he was sure he was about to meet his immediate death the moment they hit the ground. His head was buried against Asahi’s chest.

Neither of them moved. Not for a long moment. Asahi was still trying to process the initial fall itself when Noya finally pulled back from his chest, eyes round and wide as he looked up at his upperclassman. “Woah,” He blurted, his face considerably redder than it had been a few moments ago. “Crap- I meant- uhm… hi.”

Asahi stared down at him, a considerable portion of hair in front of his face even now. At least that way, it half hid his own burning cheeks.“…Hi.”

There was a brief silence.

A manic laughter erupted from the both of them.

“Cra _hahaha_ ap, I totally- _Hehahaheh- fuck-_ I totally- _stop- heh- stop lahaughafing-_ god, _fuck-“_

Noya giggled, burying his head in Asahi’s chest once more. “I _can’t-_ _pft-_ can’t help- _cahahant help it! Quit it!”_

_“You first!”_

_“No way! You’re the- GAHah- the one who crushed- hahahaha!”_

_“Stop talking!”_

Noya’s laughter slowly began to die down at that, but his grin was wide as he looked up at Asahi and said his next words. “Make me.”

Asahi went a little redder. He… he must’ve been joking still, he must’ve-

There was a hand on his cheek. This time, it didn’t slide past to mess with his hair instead. Coaxing.

Asahi kissed him. Not too long. Not too deep. Just enough to get his friend to stop talking, and just enough to leave him wanting more. And by the way Noya yanked him back down the moment he started to draw away, he supposed Noya probably wanted more, too.

He'd kissed people before. He had a girlfriend, once, in his 3rd year of middle school. Of course she'd only really been a close friend to him, as much as Asahi had repeatedly denied it to both her and himself back then, but still. He had really liked her and wanted to make her happy. So he let her kiss him. 

It wasn't anything special or grand or like fireworks out of a romance novel. It'd just been... wet. And very, very awkward. And while kissing Noya was considerably less awkward (mostly because this time, he'd actually really wanted to) it wasn't completely out of the woods. He'd just accidentally fell on the poor guy, for Christ's sake, which already provided for awkward positioning. Not to mention Noya sort of hit their foreheads together when he'd drawn Asahi back in.

Even then... 

It was perfect to him. Nishinoya was perfect. This Summer day, getting to walk home with him, getting to _kiss_ him... was perfect. Even if it was on a children's playground. Even if the positioning was all awkward. Even if Noya did actually tug him down way too hard now that he was thinking about it. Because he was here with a person he loved, with a person he'd gladly spend the rest of the day with if given the chance, a person he'd spend the whole _year_ with. Because it was Noya.

And maybe, in retrospect... he should've gotten Noya to walk him home a lot sooner.

When Noya finally pulled back, he looked wrecked. Both by the heat and the previous events of about 2 seconds ago. His fingers were threaded into the back of Asahi’s hair, which combined with the humidity, activity, and (admittedly) a fair amount of sweat, probably made his hair look like an actual rat’s nest. Not that he could bring himself to care at the moment.

“You’re so pretty.” Noya said, seemingly awed by Asahi even when he looked like he’d been hit by a bus.

Asahi snorted despite himself. “Alright, now I _know_ you’re just saying that.”

“No! You really are!”

“My hair looks like it’s been colonized by a family of birds and I’m pretty sure I’m sweating to death.”

“What’s that gotta do with anything?” Noya tilted his head slightly. “You look beautiful right now.”

“…What do I look like normally to you?”

“Mmmm… every single simile for ‘stunning’.”

“…Simile?”

“Isn’t that what it’s called?”

“Synonym. Synonym is what you’re thinking of.”

“Same thing.”

Asahi frowned. “No, it’s really not at-“

Noya kissed him again, effectively shutting off whatever part of his brain that was in charge of whatever he was intending on saying next. He pulled back after a few seconds, brushing a strand of Asahi’s hair out of his face. “You taste like blue soda popsicles,” He said finally, smiling so wide and so stupidly happy it was practically contagious, “which, for the record, is my favorite flavor, y’know.”

Asahi raised his eyebrows. “I’ll keep that in mind and start eating blue soda popsicles right before we kiss, every single time.”

Noya’s eyes sparkled. “…Does that mean you’ll be kissing me a whole lot more?”

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fanfic I've ever posted on here and I'm. Not the greatest writer by any means and just sorta did this for fun so be nice ig? No idea if anyone will enjoy it but if you did I'm glad :)


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